I didn't see any posts about this years show, so I thought I would give my observations of what I thought was the best show ever. All though the show was small and many dealers had cut back on booth space and number of personel, it was very efficient and what usually took 3 days to see and negotiate was handled in just one day, with more time for me and wifey to enjoy the sites and shows in Vegas.
As I am mainly a cue and case dealer, I try to get to all the booths early and pick out the best lumber. First on the agenda was Jacoby as they had a booth on the front row. Picked up a nice selection of cues from Dave and got a closer look at some of his masterpieces. This year he brought his wife along and left the kids at home. I haven't seen her since the tournaments in south Padre. Really a great family and a pleasure to do business with.
Next was a trip over to Viking, where I intended to stock up on some lower end cues, but as always, they had some really killer new designs and I went off on some of the cues with the mirrored inlays and some nice pieces of curly and ebony. As always, when faced with cues on display, I tend to buy more when I can hand pick the best of the various models.
The McDermott booth was next and would have been my first place, but it was pretty crowded as I passed by several times, waiting for 'mom' and 'dad' McDermott to show up, but it was not to be. Marilyn had taken a nasty fall and broken her leg and Jim was playing doctor. We caught up later with a long phone call and to say I missed them would be an understatement.
I had a request from one of my sons for a Zombie cue, and Samantha at Cuestix steered me straight to the new line of Voodoo cues, complete with a box case in the shape of a coffin. Picked out some of the new Scorpion cues and some accessories.
From there it was over to John Barton and the Sterling booth. John had all the various new designs on display, Fellini style, Justis style, and some serious carved leather cases. Even the Sterling cases were very nice, they have a real asset in John. We even discussed a custom Texas Express for me to tote around, and I am sure he will be able to deliver.
Visited with Rene and her sister from the APA. They had Dr. Cue, Tom Rossman in their booth doing exhibitions. He is a must see should he ever come to your area. Very funny and quite the entertainer.
Robin Dodson (worlds greatest table raffler) had a booth with a new cue holder that is sure to be a good seller. Bought a case full.
As always I had to say hello to all the ladies of the WPBA, Belinda, Laura, Allison, and Karen were there and looking good. Ewa was working the Brunswick booth and was nice enough to sign a couple of pics that I had brought with me.
This is the first trip that I did not spend every hour of every day at the show. While the number of exhibitors and new products was down, I still feel that it was a great show. The buyers that did make the trip were serious and many sellers did great numbers.
As for me, I spent more than I planned to, as usual, but due to the small size I had more time for Vegas. It was the first time we got to see multiple shows and had more leisure time to play. Blue Man Group, Cirque de Soleil, David Copperfield, and Penn and Teller were on the agenda. What I have found is it is cheaper to see the shows no matter what they cost, than to pump money in the machines. In years past, a twenty dollar bill might provide you with 15 minutes of play, but today it seems only 5 minutes is the norm. I don't know about how bad the economy is, but I have never seen so many people in the Venetian gambling. It was jammed every night with players, many more than I have seen in years past. I even got to play some poker this time, two very long sessions and have to report that it was the first time I didn't book a winner. The suckers are learning fast.
All in all, a great trip and I can't believe I did not run into more AZers. I was moving pretty fast and was only stopped a couple of times. Barton got me earlier, and I had a short chat with Mark Griffith about Galveston. Also ran into Mike Janis and his new wife and discussed the tour business. Jerry Forsyth caught me for a short interview and gave me a disc for my troubles. Sorry for the long post, but I rarely write anymore and had to get it out of my system. I feel much better now. Robin Adair.
As I am mainly a cue and case dealer, I try to get to all the booths early and pick out the best lumber. First on the agenda was Jacoby as they had a booth on the front row. Picked up a nice selection of cues from Dave and got a closer look at some of his masterpieces. This year he brought his wife along and left the kids at home. I haven't seen her since the tournaments in south Padre. Really a great family and a pleasure to do business with.
Next was a trip over to Viking, where I intended to stock up on some lower end cues, but as always, they had some really killer new designs and I went off on some of the cues with the mirrored inlays and some nice pieces of curly and ebony. As always, when faced with cues on display, I tend to buy more when I can hand pick the best of the various models.
The McDermott booth was next and would have been my first place, but it was pretty crowded as I passed by several times, waiting for 'mom' and 'dad' McDermott to show up, but it was not to be. Marilyn had taken a nasty fall and broken her leg and Jim was playing doctor. We caught up later with a long phone call and to say I missed them would be an understatement.
I had a request from one of my sons for a Zombie cue, and Samantha at Cuestix steered me straight to the new line of Voodoo cues, complete with a box case in the shape of a coffin. Picked out some of the new Scorpion cues and some accessories.
From there it was over to John Barton and the Sterling booth. John had all the various new designs on display, Fellini style, Justis style, and some serious carved leather cases. Even the Sterling cases were very nice, they have a real asset in John. We even discussed a custom Texas Express for me to tote around, and I am sure he will be able to deliver.
Visited with Rene and her sister from the APA. They had Dr. Cue, Tom Rossman in their booth doing exhibitions. He is a must see should he ever come to your area. Very funny and quite the entertainer.
Robin Dodson (worlds greatest table raffler) had a booth with a new cue holder that is sure to be a good seller. Bought a case full.
As always I had to say hello to all the ladies of the WPBA, Belinda, Laura, Allison, and Karen were there and looking good. Ewa was working the Brunswick booth and was nice enough to sign a couple of pics that I had brought with me.
This is the first trip that I did not spend every hour of every day at the show. While the number of exhibitors and new products was down, I still feel that it was a great show. The buyers that did make the trip were serious and many sellers did great numbers.
As for me, I spent more than I planned to, as usual, but due to the small size I had more time for Vegas. It was the first time we got to see multiple shows and had more leisure time to play. Blue Man Group, Cirque de Soleil, David Copperfield, and Penn and Teller were on the agenda. What I have found is it is cheaper to see the shows no matter what they cost, than to pump money in the machines. In years past, a twenty dollar bill might provide you with 15 minutes of play, but today it seems only 5 minutes is the norm. I don't know about how bad the economy is, but I have never seen so many people in the Venetian gambling. It was jammed every night with players, many more than I have seen in years past. I even got to play some poker this time, two very long sessions and have to report that it was the first time I didn't book a winner. The suckers are learning fast.
All in all, a great trip and I can't believe I did not run into more AZers. I was moving pretty fast and was only stopped a couple of times. Barton got me earlier, and I had a short chat with Mark Griffith about Galveston. Also ran into Mike Janis and his new wife and discussed the tour business. Jerry Forsyth caught me for a short interview and gave me a disc for my troubles. Sorry for the long post, but I rarely write anymore and had to get it out of my system. I feel much better now. Robin Adair.
